Sales and advertising display device



Aug. 31, 1937. E. N. FARKAS :1- AL 2,091,250

SALES AND ADVERTISING DISPLAY DEVICE Filed April 29, 1937 2 Sheets-Shoat 1 Patented Aug. 31, v 1937 i 2,091,260

UNITED STATES. PATENT OFFICE SALES AND ADVERTISING DISPLAY DEVICE Emil N. Park" and Frank nrarm, Chicago, Ill. Application April 29, I937, Serial No. 139,752

Our invention relates to sales and advertising display devices and more particularly to a device for illustrating the details of construction, the assembly, the-operation or any or all of them, of a Fig. 3 is a perspective view, with a portion of one of the sheets broken away to show the construction;

Fig. 4 is a view in elevation of one of the pages 5 desired apparatus, appliance, structure or the like. showing its particulars with an imprint of an 5 The invention has among its objects the producunderlying page shown in dotted lines as it would tion of a novel, attractive, convenient, simple, inappear when the page is superimposed over a preexpensive, efiicient and satisfactory sales display ceding page; device for use wherever found applicable. Fig. 5 is a similar view also illustrating in dotted The invention has among its further objects lines-imprints on preceding pages; 10 the production of a device of the kind described Fig. 6 is a similar view illustrating the use of that will simply and clearly display on suitably colors, etc., to display operation; prepared pages or sheets, construction and assem- Fig. '7 is a view showing a succeeding page and bly details of a desired structure, the manner or illustrating a complete or finished device; 5 order of assembly or disassembly, and in a pre- Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the sheet 40-42,

i'erred sequence, or the operation of the same, it and a an operating appliance. v Fig. 9 is a sectional view of a portion of several Among its further objects is the construction of sheets to illustrate the use of the sheet 40-42. a device which provides all 01 the foregoing To avoid confusion and misunderstanding, it features and requires but a minimum, it any, demay be mentioned that the particular apparatus tailed explanatory matter, the same being subshown in the imprints illustrated in the drawings 20 stantially illustratively self-explanatory, even to is merely for illustrative purposes to show the those of limited understanding. construction purpose and use of our improved A further pbject is the production of a device display device. Briefly, our device consists of a which may be employed as a construction, assemplurality of pages, preferably of similar construc- 25 bly or operating manual useful to obviate the. tion and uniform size, each consisting of a relanecessity of, sending expert or experienced tively stiff sheet having a suitably shaped window workmen distances to set up or install apparatus, with a very thin, transparent sheet extended over or to instruct' inexpert local workmen in lns'tallathe window opening and upon which may be imtion or operation. printed suitable and desired pictorial illustra 30 A further object is to produce a device simply tions, so that as the pages are successively superand inexpensively made up of cooperating parts imposed in registry one on the other in a predewhich enter into the same including the employtermined order and relationship or sequence, ment of carrier pages for carrying extremely there are displayed details of construction or thin, transparent sheets which may be suitably operation as well as a more or less complete asimprinted and provide complete visibility through y. ach page bearing a imprint illustrata comparatively large number of sheets. Iming one or moredetall parts. prints on underlying sheets are readily visible, With our improved device it is possible and thus permitting the assembly of a considerable convenient to view designs or illustrations pronumber of sheets or pages and showing of many gressively one or several pages separately from detail illustrations in desired sequences. all of the others or at any time quickly and Many other objects and advantages of the deconveniently to review any preceding page or vice herein shown and described will be obvious series of pages, and then by turning or duplicatto those skilled in the art from the disclosure ing pages proceed to add more or remove, etc. herein given. In our invention we provide for absolute and in- 45 To this end our invention consists in the novel terchangeab e a cy of position bllause 0111' construction, arrangement and combination of Pa e Substantially in actual Contact. the parts herein shown and described, and more parimprinted designs or illustrations being accurateticularly pointed out in the claims. 1y locate'd on each sheet to provide for accurate In the drawings, wherein like reference chari ry With y preceding 0r Succeeding s- 50 acters indicate like or corresponding parts: tration on another page. We can at all times on Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an eman earlier or later page present another object bodiment of the invention; which may require positioning within the Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken substantially on boundaries of another displayed illustration and line 2--2 of Fig. 1; subjects may overlap; that is to say, parts whose 55 boundaries pass in front or behind any other part, can be shown in. its entirety. Our arrangement permits us to show on individual pages more detail of parts seen than would be visible of the part in viewing the whole.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, represents a page of suitable material, preferably a somewhat stiff and durable but light-weight cardboard or the equivalent, the same having a portion within the confines removed to provide a window I of the desired size and shape, the body of the page forming a frame 9 for the window. Extending over the window is a. sheet 8 of very thin, fiexible, transparent material, such as cellophane, kodapack" (these being trade names for a suitable material now on the market), or similar equivalent thin-sheet, transparent material. The sheet of thin material designated by the numeral 8 on said figures is larger than the 2 opening 1 and, if desired, may extend over the back or front to a desired distance from the outer edges of the frame portion 9 and be secured in place by any suitable adhesive. It is preferred to tension thetransparent sheet when attaching so that it is without wrinkles. It is desirable to use a very thin, as well as very clear, transparent material which, while difficult to handle by itself, may be readily handled when attached to the frame and upon which may be printed or otherwise applied suitable illustrations, the frame not only serving as a convenient carrier for the trans parency for display purposes, but also during the imprinting of the illustrations on the transparency, to which latter further reference will be hereinafter made.

Any desired number of sheets or pages may be prepared, only a few to illustrate the use of the device being shown in the drawings and indicated by the reference numerals 2, 3, 4 and 5 shown in Figs'.--5 to '7, inclusive. In these figures the window openings are all designatedby the numeral 1 and the transparent sheets by the numerals B "8 :8 and 8 respectively.

In making up the pages, the frames 9 are first prepared with Window openings and then the transparent sheets 8 etc. attached thereto at the back, providing a unitary structure. The desired pictorial illustrations are then imprinted on the transparent sheets in the proper location, the same being of the desired size and color, so that when a number of sheets or pages are superimposed, the associated designs will properly register. In Fig. 1 we have shown an imprint ID, which in this particular case, represents the inner shell of a heater, the shell being shown in section.

In Fig. 4, page 2, are shown imprints ll, I2, I3 and M which may be imprinted on the transparent sheet 8 representing piping or fittings. In this figure in dotted lines is shown the shell i0 which is displayed on another sheet, the purpose of showing the same in this figure being to illustrate how the various illustrations register and are visible when superimposed, as well as to show the appearance when pages are combined, in

which case of course, the shell H) would show through the transparent sheet 8 as illustrated at H] in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5, illustrating a page 3 with the transparent sheet 8 shows the imprint of suitable insulation I5 and an outer shell I6 which are depicted on this page. This figure also shows in dotted lines the features illustrated in Figs. 1 and 4 as they would appear when the three sheets are superimposed one above the other with the imprints in registry. Fig. 6, or page 4, shows the transparent sheet 8 On this sheet it is shown how there may be imprinted suitable colored impressions as, for example, I! and I8 of contrasting colors to show hot and cold water or other matters for the purpose of illustrating the operation of the device. In order to avoid confusion, it may be mentioned that outlines of the parts shown on the preceding sheets are shown in full lines on this figure. Some of these may be only visible through the transparent sheet, while others may be directly printed or reprinted on the transparent sheet, this being more or less immaterial.

In Fig. 7, upon which is shown page 5, there is shown a panel or imprint I9 intended to represent the exterior of the completed device. In this instance the impression may be opaque, so that only the exterior is shown with any piping projecting therefrom as may be desired. It is obvious that there may be any number of pages, this depending upon the apparatus to be displayed and the amount of detail features disclosed, as well as the various operations or assembly steps that it may be desired to show.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 4 to 7, inclusive, the frame portion 9 or the body part of the pages may have printed thereon suitable advertising, explanatory matter or illustrations of details as indicated at 20, or prices, dimensions and specifications, for example, which may be imprinted at 2!. 22 or 23. Lead lines may run from the matter on the frame to the design sheet, or one page have indicia or characters to superimpose on a preceding design to identify parts. There may be additional pages which may be sheets without windows or with more or less opaqued windows to be placed in the beginning or at the end containing illustrations, descriptions, instructions or such other material as may be found desirable.

As was mentioned, the device is used by successively superimposing one page over the other, and to provide for registry of the pages so that the parts are in proper registry, we have shown the pages mounted on a backing 25 and secured thereto and to each other by suitable binder rings, spirals or the like 26, or any equivalent for the purpose. The backing l is shown with a cover supporting back 21 hinged thereto as indicated at 28 and with a base 29 preferably arranged to fold at 30. The base 29 may be provided with a groove as indicated at 3| for supporting the lower edge of 25 when the device is set up. The entire device may be folded in the form of a book. As shown in Fig. 1, we prefer to provide suitable guiding means, a simple and preferred construction being the fingers 32 secured to the backing i so that the pages are supported and maintained in proper relation at the top and aligned at the bottom and maintained in registry. Additional guides may be employed if desired. In using the device, the same may be set up substantially as shown in Fig. l, with the various pages as shown at 2, 3, 4 and 5, etc. The material is displayed by turning the pages over successively onto the front pages supported on the backing 25.

We have shown in Fig. 1 a supplemental page or part which consists of an opaque page or sheet 40 folded back on itself as at 4| to provide a hinged flap or blank sheet 42 (see detail Fig. 8). Ordinarily this may be folded up as shown in Fig. 1 where not used. When it is desired to blank out or cover preceding sheets in order to more prominently display the illustration on the top sheet or sheets and confine the display entirely to the material on the top sheets, the portion 42 may be opened up and then folded back 35 men from a distance.

so as to underlie the transparent sheet or sheets and illustration which are desired to display (see Fig; 9). The sheet or part 42 being blank and opaque the design on the outer display sheet 01' sheets stands out clear,and by itself. This thereby enables one or more outer or top sheets to be isolated from preceding'sheets that are under and conceal any desired sheets which are under.

It will thus be seen that as the pages are successively turned over there is displayed in regular predetermined order and relationship or sequence, details of construction. the method of assembly, or steps in the operation of any suitable apparatus, appliance or structure. Theapparatus also lends itself well to illustrating details of building construction, or in teaching various courses. The uses of the device are practically without end and it is not considered necessary to endeavor to set forth any considerable number herein. It will be obvious that in setting up machinery or construction work, it is possible to prepare pages with suitable imprints which may be sent out on a job, enabling local labor' to perform the work and without sending out special or expert work- In other words, it is possible to convey. instruction visibly rather than by written explanation or information, which may be complex and perhaps difficult to clearly express, if not even entirely impossible. Of course such explanation as is desired may be put on the faces of the pages.

With our improved device it is possible to blank out or opaque any particular feature on one page or in lieu of printing or painting on the sheet to illustrate a picture of a detail by attaching the picture to the transparent sheet at either face so that it will properly register with an associated page, and then thereafter on a succeeding page restore the blanked out material as previously shown, or put in new or modified material. In other words, the construction is so extremely flexible it is possible to provide a wide range of illustrations and details without destroying the unit as a whole. We are not required to have a fixed, definite sequence but may freely vary or interchange the order of displaying our illustrations as may suit our convenience or purpose and may repeat or duplicate pages as may be found desirable to secure the desired result.

In making up the pages with the more or less stiff, rigid body consisting of a frame part 9 with the window or cut-out portion 1, it is possible to use the extremely thin and clear transparent sheets over the window, the thin sheets affording more transparency, permitting more pages or sheets to be combined than would be possible with thicker transparencies. This arrangement also facilitates the printing of the illustration on the very thin flexible material of the kind mentioned. At the present time such thin materials, owing to difliculty in handling, are printed" from continuous sheets from rolls of material 'only on very costly presses, so that it is not commercially practical to print them except in largequantities. It is only by printing on continuoussheets and putting the sheets under tension togive the desired rigidity that such materials can be employed for printing purposes. We can readily tension the individual sheets as they are applied to the cardboard sheets. This, is particularly true where printing is desired in several colors, and where acourate register of the successive printings is essential. Our invention provides a means for printing on such very thin, flexible, transparent materials on small commercial presses or even on simple hand presses, thus affording a great saving in production costs and also making practical the printing on such sheets in small quantities. Heretofore, when it was necessary or desirable to print on transparent materials in small quantities on simple printing equipment, it could be done only by providing a heavy and relatively rigid sheet of transparent material. Thus the requisite firmness for feeding small area sheets and properly registering successive illustrations or colors could only be secured at great additional cost, owing to the higher price of the thicker materials, at the same time losing the desirable transparency of extremely thin material. By using our frame border of heavy and relatively rigid, inexpensive materials, as for example, cardboard, and by combining the lower cost of finer transparent material therewith, we have a gain in transparency, have rigidity, as well as reduced cost of materials and manufacturing costs.

It will be noted that with our cardboard sheets or pages provided with a window opening and a thin, transparent sheet extended over the opening, the imprint of the illustration or design on the sheet, on the one face, is substantially inset so that it is not so apt to be rubbed off or effaced, and this is also true if it is on the opposite side, since it is located within the confines of the window on an adjacent sheet. It is, therefore, immaterial on which side the imprints are placed on the transparent sheet or even if on both sides, as the same are protected. In actual practice it has been found that if an extremely fine transparent sheet is used, on fairly thin cardboard, when the pages are superimposed with the windows aligned, there is a static tendency for the thin, transparent sheets when arranged face to face to seem to attract each other and draw together, so that the thin sheets, while of course not in the same plane, are so close together that they substantially appear to be a single sheet, so that the various impressions seem to be on a single sheet. While this does not afford any effective perspective, this is immaterial and in fact preferred since any desired apparent perspective or-depth on any particular illustration may be accomplished by shading or otherwise.

By covering the apertures with sheets of thin transparent material, the positioning of successive views to illustrate true relations of parts which overlap is accomplished without obstructing more than may be intentional of those parts illustrated on preecding pages.

We also produce pages suitable for use in an assembly of pages, easy to take hold of, sufficiently rigid to handle and turn over and stable in its own plane for suitable combination with other similar elements in a predetermined order and relationship or sequence and perfect registry .with them. Still another advantage is that we acquire an area suitable for printing elaborate, fine color representations on the adjacent cardboard surfaces, supplementing the material on the transparent surfaces. It is not practical to print complex and fine process color effects upon celluloid or like surfaces and in this way we are able to employ supplemental effects. adding to the portrayal of the essential or the transparent portions. In connection with the printing of the devices, it will be obvious that the frame or stiff body of the page enables the page to be accurately located during printing, so that absolute registry on successive pages may be secured on the transparent portions. This is particularly important, if not essential, in color printing where colors are successively applied and reprinting required.

Having thus described our invention, it is obvious that various immaterial modifications may be made in the same Without departing from the spirit of our invention; hence we do not wish to be understood as limiting ourselves to the exact form, construction, arrangement and combination of parts herein shown and described, or uses mentioned.

What We claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

i. In a selling display device of the kind described, the combination of a plurality of pages hingedly secured together, each consisting of a stifl body sheet having an opening through the body of the same and providing an opaque frame about the opening, a. thin transparent sheet of material capable of receiving an imprint extending over the opening and secured to the stiff sheet at a plurality of points about the opening, the transparent sheets provided with impressions or imprints depicting certain portions of a device to be displayed partially or completely assembled, the imprints on the transparent sheets being so disposed on the same as to superimpose in registry and display relationship of the illustrated portions as the pages are successively turned to assemble the illustrated portions of the device from the interior to the exterior of the same.

2. In a selling device of the kind described, the combination of a plurality of cooperating sheets of corresponding size, each consisting of a sheet having a portion cut out to provide a window with a frame about the window, a tensioned sheet of thin transparent material mounted on a face of the sheet and extending over the window to provide a printing surface at the window, said transparent sheets having imprinted thereon representations of a portion-of a complete device so arranged to be brought into a desired registry to perpetrate a unit device, whereby when the several sheets are superimposed the portions may be successively brought into registry to display the several portions assembled in a completed unit.

3. A display device of the kind described, comprising a plurality of assembled leaves, means for hingedly connecting adjacent meeting ends of the leaves together at one end of the assembly, each leaf having a transparent portion, said transparent portions being positioned to superimpose one on another, figures imprinted on each of said transparent portions and relatively positioned with respect to the figures on an adjacent other leaf, each figure depicting a detail element of a unit, and descriptive matter on the opaque portion of each leaf relative to the figure thereon, said leaves being adapted to be successively rotated in or out of superimposing relation.

4. The combination of a plurality of sheets of relatively stifi material, each having a portion out out to provide a window opening, a sheet of relatively thin, transparent material secured to one face of each of said first mentioned sheets and extending over the opening therethrough, and pictorial representations of objects constituting parts of a unit to be displayed imprinted on said transparent sheets, the various parts being distributed on different sheets, whereby a complete unit may be pictorially built up step by step by superimposing sheets to illustrate the com struction of the unit, a substantially rigid backing member, means for hingedly securing one edge of each sheet to the backing member, means on the backing member for engaging edges of the pages and maintaining the displayed pages in alignment.

5. The combination of a plurality of sheets of relatively stiff material, each having a portion cut out to provide a window opening, a sheet of relatively thin, transparent material secured to one face of each of said first mentioned sheets and extending over the opening therethrough, and pictorial representations 0! objects constituting parts of a unit to be displayed imprinted on said transparent sheets, the various parts being distributed on different sheets, whereby a complete unit may be pictorially built up step by step by superimposing sheets to illustrate the construction of the unit, a substantially rigid backing member, means for hingedly securing one edge of each sheet to the backing member, and an opaque sheet associated with said windowed sheets for selectively covering any sheets underlying the same.

6. The combination of a plurality of sheets of relatively stiff material constituting pages, each having a portion cut out to provide a window opening, a sheet of relatively thin, transparent material secured to one face of each of said first mentioned sheets and extending over the opening thex'ethrough, and pictorial representations of objects constituting parts of a unit imprinted on said transparent sheets, the various parts being distributed on different sheets, whereby a complete unit may be pictorially built up step by step to illustrate the construction of the unit, a substantially rigid backing member, means for hingedly securing one edge of each sheet to the backing member, means on the backing member for engaging adjacent edges and maintaining the pages in alignment, and foldable cover means hinged to said backing member adjacent the hinged edges 01' said sheets, said cover constituting a support for the back when the same is set up in operative display position.

7. A pair of cover members, a plurality of leaves, normally contained between said cover members, means for pivotally connecting the cover members and leaves together, each leaf having a corresponding transparent portion containing an illustration relatively positioned with respect to the illustration on another leaf, each illustration comprising a selected detailed element of a unit desired to display, and descriptive matter on the opaque portion of each leaf relative to the figure thereon, said leaves being adapted to be rotated in or out of superimposed relation.

8. The combination of a plurality of sheets of relatively stiff material constituting pages, each having a portion cut out to provide a windbw opening, a tensioned sheet of relatively thin, transparent material secured to one face of each of said first mentioned sheets, the same being spaced from the plane of the opposed face of the sheets and extending over the opening therethrough, and pictorial representations of objects imprinted on said transparent sheets and constituting parts 01' a unit to be illustrated, the various represented parts being distributed on different sheets, whereby a complete unit may be pictorially built up step by step to illustrate the construction of the unit, asubstantially rigid backing member, means for hingedly securing one edge of each sheet to the backing member, a supplemental page of substantially the same size as the windowed pages similarly hinged to the backing member, the supplemental page provided with an opaque extending part hinged to its free end and movable to selectively overlie any desired windowed pages and foldable covermeans.

hinged to said backing member and constituting a support for the back when the same is set up in operative display position.

9. The method of constructing a page for a display device of the kind described, consisting in cutting the page from a relatively stiff paper sheet of a desired size and shape and cutting out a window opening within the confines of the sheet of a. desired size and shape, thence cutting a sheet of very thin transparent material of a size greater than the window opening in the cardboard, tensioning the transparent sheet so that it is taut ove the opening and securing the edges to a face of the sheet to permanently combine the two sheets, thence imprinting a desired 20 design on a face of the transparent sheet after mounting on the paper sheet and within the confines of the opening, using edges of the stiff paper sheet as a guideior locating the design on the transparent sheet whereby when the paper sheet- 25 is embodied in an assembly with other sheets the designs will register when superimposed.

10. The method of constructing a display device having pages of the kind described, consisting in blanking the pages from relatively stiff paper sheets and cutting out a window opening in each to provide a frame, then securing a very thin sheet of transparent material on a face of each paper sheet over the opening, then imprinting pictorial illustrations on each of the several transparent sheets in position to register with associated pictorial illustrations on a cooperating sheet, and combining the sheets together.

11. The method of constructing a display device having pages of the kind described, consisting in blanking the pages to a uniform size from a relatively stiff cardboard sheet with an EMIL N. FRANK F. FARKAS. 

